At first glance you might not recognize this tool as an axe, but if you have some light-duty clearing in mind, this Swedish-style clearing axe from Bahco offers a few advantages over a typical axe.

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The Fusion Contractor 2×4 diverges from the path of your normal multi-tool. Scramble a pencil sharpener, a level, a wire stripper, a pocket knife, storage for one nail, and a faux circ saw blade — and you get the functions a contractor will need? The website aims its spiel at the Father’s Day/birthday crowd, intimating that you might know a contractor who needs this “thematic” knife.

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MSC has marked down the Mitutoyo Digimatic 0-6″ digital calipers to $90, almost $50 off the $137 list price. The Digimatic, the workhorse in the world of digital calipers, features long battery life and accuracy to 1/100th of a millimeter. It can take inside, outside, and depth measurements, incremental or absolute, with .0005″ resolution, displayed in metric or imperial units.

In short, it’s a powerhouse of measuring, and discounted to boot. The sale goes through August 11, 2008.

Digimatic 0-6″ Digital Caliper [MSC Direct]

A while back we posted about a transmission adapter for a normal jack — it drew only one comment, saying that they’re unstable and that Harbor Freight carries a 450-lb transmission jack for $70. This gas tank adapter for transmission jacks might be the same deal, but since I’ve never pulled a transmission or gas tank, I figured I’d ask y’all if this is hot or not. Street pricing on the gas tank adapter runs $145 and up, and the only one I see is from Sunex.

Does a gas tank adapter for your transmission jack lift your spirits, or does it give you that sinking feeling?

Gas Tank Adapter [Sunex] (PDF page 9)
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?] [What's This?]

If you’re not a woodworker, you may not realize that the panels in raised-panel doors just float in the frame — then again, if you own a few doors that rattle, you might be painfully aware of that fact. Squeeze some Space Balls between the panel and frame when you’re assembling the door, and the panel will still be able to move, but it won’t rattle.

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After being disappointed with the electric bazooka, I did at least find a propane flamethrower!  This lovely tool burns propane at a rate of 5.7 lbs. per hour and puts out 125,000 BTU, to bend 1/2″ to 8″ schedule 40 or 80 PVC — or you can set fire to your boots, pants, and anything under the pipe!

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Amazon is selling the Master Lock 22″ Nine-Link Street Cuff for $43, a good $19 less than the normal list price. Secure one cuff to the frame of your bike or motorcycle, and the other cuff to a signpost, parking meter, or another bike. Master Lock makes the cuffs of hardened steel and joins them with a heavy roller chain — so they’re a little better than the dime-store cuffs you had as a kid.

Via Amazon [What’s This?] [What's This?]
Nine-Link Street Cuff [Master Lock]
Street Pricing [Google Products]

(Friday, July 25th, 2008) It’s a substandard Friday night with even fewer woodworking reruns on DIY.

All times are central.

• Rock Solid: Firehouse Patio Revamp (DIY, 5:30 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Combination Locks, Pottery, Recreational Vehicles, Erasers (Discovery, 6:00 p.m.)
• How Do They Do It?: Family Car, Titanium, Letter (Science, 6:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Plastic Injection Moulds, Automotive Oil Filters, Filing Cabinets, Blown Glass (Discovery, 6:30 p.m.)
• How Do They Do It?: Knives, Diamonds, Bricks (Science, 6:30 p.m.)
• Hammered With John & Jimmy DiResta: Old-School Fishing Boat (DIY, 8:00 p.m.)
• Ice Road Truckers: Man Down (History, 8:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Remix: Green Products (Science, 8:00 p.m.)
• Wood Works: Masters and Mentors Tour: James Krenov and Art Carpenter (DIY, 8:30 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Remix: Golf (Science, 8:30 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Pre-inked Stamps, Cranberries, Cotton Yarn, Road Signs (Discovery, 10:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Plastic Bottles and Jars, Mail, Eggs, Handcrafted Wooden Pens (Discovery, 10:30 p.m.)
• Forge and Anvil: More Furniture. Episode 108 (RFD-TV, 10:30 p.m.)

Enjoy.

Say goodbye to tire-spike strips that blow out your tires. Federal Signal’s Stinger spike system employs hollow spikes to deflate the tires in a regulated manner, gradually slowing the vehicle instead of causing Hollywood-style crashes.

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Solder-It boasts that this solder paste’s tensile strength is five times greater than normal solder.  With a tensile strength of 10,000 to 25,000 PSI it should certainly handle most applications; for instance, a square inch of it would easily hold a truck bumper on. Don’t use it for a muffler, though — the 430-degree free-flow point will drop the muffler before you hit the corner at the end of the block.

The street pricing ranges widely, but a 7.1 gram syringe of the paste will run at least $5.

Automotive Solder Paste [Solder-It]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?] [What's This?]

It seems like you can’t walk into a mechanic’s shop without seeing at least one tech wearing nitrile gloves — and maybe even a few of the old-timers. There was a time when these guys regularly used cleaners and solvents that would melt the skin off your fingers. However the long-term effects of chemical exposure coupled with the short-term problem of filthy, nasty hands have convinced them to slip some of these on. How about you?

The various companies that make these gloves seem to be marketing directly to mechanics: sending out free samples, making them in basic black rather than the purples and blues they used to come in — not to mention giving them names like “The Shadow.”

In addition to their obvious resistance to oils and solvents, some of these gloves feature textured surfaces that provide a better grip in slippery situations. And since they’re not made of latex rubber, you don’t have to worry about allergic reactions.

So what do you think? Are these an indispensable part of your work routine, or do you just love the feel of the grime under your fingernails? Tell us in the comments.

Street Pricing [Google Products]

One thing leads to another: First you want to race cars, then you want to modify and maintain your racecar yourself — maybe because you’re broke — and then you already have the welding equipment and the garage and you need a worktable, and before you know it you’re building Truckosaurus, bane of garden equipment and eater of fences. Things just happen. With me, I started out to build a recumbent bike, and now this cool video of a personal blimp lands in my inbox — enjoy!

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The handsaw has existed in its current form for hundreds of years — you wouldn’t think it could be improved much. Evidently you don’t work for Bahco. Their designers have come up with a new handsaw design that’s either innovative or just overly complex.

The most obvious difference in the Ergo Handsaw System is that the handle and the blade separate. This allows you to change blades to match the material and exchange blades when the current one becomes dull. Why change blades when you could just use a different saw? By spending more on the handle you gain some advantages.

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I’ve seen a lot of comments about the Utili-Key from Swiss-Tech; imagine my surprise, when I went searching through Toolmonger archives for our post on it, to discover that we haven’t written one. So if you’re one of the readers who has suggested the Utili-Key, bear with me — for anyone who hasn’t seen this tool, you might want to take a closer look.

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J&L Industrial Supply is taking 25% off when you order five or more items, good through July 25, 2008. Plus they’ll throw in a free micrometer for orders over $250. This deal should come in handy if you’re tooling up your home shop, or if you just need to buy some boxes of Grade-8 bolts.

Enter 25WSPE in the “Promotional Code” box on the shopping cart to receive the discount. A free hex key set will be automatically added to qualifying orders.

*All items are discounted up to the discount shown above. Prices should be well below any other advertised price. If you find it for less, send us the advertisement and we’ll beat it by 10%. Offer ends at 11:59 pm EST.

As always, read the fine print — some items aren’t eligible. And we’re not sure why they say “Hex Key Set” when the splash ad on their main page says “micrometer,” but you know how these company web pages are…

25% Off Code 25WSPE [J&L Industrial Supply]

(Thursday, July 24th, 2008) Such a night of newness! On a new American Chopper the crew gets chosen to build a bike by Mercedes of all companies.  We also get a new The Works on power tools, and two new episodes of Wrecked.

All times are central.

• Rock Solid: Stone Furniture (DIY, 5:30 p.m.)
• Modern Marvels: Mad Electricity (History, 7:00 p.m.)
• Overhaulin’: That’s All Volks (TLC, 7:00 p.m.)
• Classic Tractors (RFD-TV, 7:30 p.m.)
• Cool Tools: Out of Reach (DIY, 8:00 p.m.)
• American Chopper: Mercedes-Amg Bike (TLC, 8:00 p.m.) NEW
• Cool Tools: Innovators (DIY, 8:30 p.m.)
• The Works: Power Tools (History, 9:00 p.m.) NEW
• Wrecked: Old Dogs, New Tricks (Speed, 9:00 p.m.) NEW
• Wrecked: Accidents Happen (Speed, 9:30 p.m.) NEW

Enjoy.

Thanks to its sawtooth design this wicked-looking shovel can slice though sod, roots, rocky and compacted soil, and even ice better than a standard round-point shovel.

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